comb

[ kohm ]

/ koʊm /

noun

a toothed strip of plastic, hard rubber, bone, wood, or metal, used for arranging the hair, untangling it, or holding it in place.

a currycomb.

any comblike instrument, object, or formation.

the fleshy, more or less serrated outgrowth on the head of certain gallinaceous birds, especially the domestic fowl.

something resembling or suggesting this, as the crest of a wave.

a honeycomb, or any similar group of cells.

a machine for separating choice cotton or wool fibers from noil.

a comblike instrument for imparting a grainlike finish to a painted surface.

Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. a ridge of a roof.

a series of springlike prongs projecting from a spine, usually of plastic, for making a loose-leaf binding.

a trowel having a notched edge for applying adhesives in setting tiles or the like.

Armor. a ridge along the top of a helmet, especially of the morion.

Masonry. drag(def 31).

the upper edge of the buttstock of a rifle or shotgun.

verb (used with object)

to arrange or adorn (the hair) with a comb.

to use (something) in the manner of a comb: She was slowly combing her fingers through her hair.

to remove (anything undesirable) with or as if with a comb: She combed the snarls out of her hair. They combed the cowards from the group.

to search everywhere in: He combed the files for the missing letter.

to separate (textile fibers) with a comb.

to scrape with or as with a comb.

to sweep across; rake: High winds combed the seacoast.

verb (used without object)

to roll over or break at the crest, as a wave.

Nearby words

comate, comatic, comatose, comatulid, comayagua, comb, comb back, comb jelly, comb out, comb-footed spider, comb-out

Origin of comb

before 900; Middle English; Old English comb, camb; cognate with Old High German kamb (German Kamm), Old Norse kambr, Greek gómphos “pin, peg,” gomphíos “molar tooth”; see cam¹

Related formscomb·less, adjectivecomb·less·ness, nounun·combed, adjectivewell-combed, adjective

Definition for combing (2 of 2)

combings

[ koh-mingz ]

/ ˈkoʊ mɪŋz /

plural noun

hairs removed with a comb or a brush.

Origin of combings

First recorded in 1565–75; comb¹ + -ing¹ + -s³

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for combing

But do you think the same amount of media resources would have been dedicated to combing through Lerner's emails as Palins?
The IRS Email Double Standard|Matt Lewis|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cops went searching for a would-be suicide bomber, combing through the north-central part of the city.
As Gaza War Comes Home to Israel, a Reluctant Suicide Bomber Emerges|Itay Hod|August 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He says investigators are combing through all the homicides over the last decade to find other similarities.
Italy’s Scariest Serial Killer Returns|Barbie Latza Nadeau|May 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The police searched all the rooms looking for any Stavitsky documents and combing through financial records.
The Mafia Ruling Ukraine’s Mobs|Jamie Dettmer|March 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Right now 29 airplanes and 18 ships are involved in combing the area where on Sunday the satellite found the debris.
Was MH370 Carrying Killer Cargo?|Clive Irving|March 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The man approached, dripping and breathing heavily, and placed his hands on the combing.
Tom Slade at Temple Camp|Percy K. Fitzhugh
The cooks and stewards, their hands on the combing, filled the fore-hatch.
Continental Monthly, Vol. I, No. V, May, 1862|Various
She was then wetting her head with the water in the basin, and combing her hair with a golden comb.
Myths and Folk Tales of Ireland|Jeremiah Curtin
Wilkins is combing the East Side and I hope to have news in a few hours.
The Mystery of the Hidden Room|Marion Harvey
How pleasant it must be to have Mrs. Crabtree combing and scolding, and scolding and combing, for hours every day!
Holiday House|Catherine Sinclair

British Dictionary definitions for combing (1 of 2)

combings

/ (ˈkəʊmɪŋz) /

pl n

the loose hair, wool, etc, removed by combing, esp that of animals

the unwanted loose short fibres removed in combing cotton, etc

British Dictionary definitions for combing (2 of 2)

comb

/ (kəʊm) /

noun

a toothed device of metal, plastic, wood, etc, used for disentangling or arranging hair

a tool or machine that separates, cleans, and straightens wool, cotton, etc

Australian and NZ the fixed cutter on a sheep-shearing machine

anything resembling a toothed comb in form or function

the fleshy deeply serrated outgrowth on the top of the heads of certain birds, esp the domestic fowl

anything resembling the comb of a bird

a currycomb

a honeycomb

the row of fused cilia in a ctenophore

go over with a fine-tooth comb, go over with a fine-toothed comb, go through with a fine-tooth comb or go through with a fine-toothed comb to examine very thoroughly

verb

(tr) to use a comb on

(when tr, often foll by through) to search or inspect with great carethe police combed the woods

Word Origin for comb

Old English camb; related to Old Norse kambr, Old High German camb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for combing (1 of 2)

comb

Old English camb "comb, crest, honeycomb" (later Anglian comb), from West Germanic *kambaz (cf. Old Saxon and Old High German camb, German Kamm, Middle Dutch cam, Dutch kam, Old Norse kambr), literally "toothed object," from PIE *gombhos, from root *gembh- "to bite, tooth" (cf. Greek gomphos "a molar tooth," Sanskrit gambha-s "tooth").

Word Origin and History for combing (1 of 2)

comb

late 14c. (implied in past participle kombid), verb derived from comb (n.); replacing the former verb, Old English cemban, which however survives in unkempt. Related: Combed; combing.

Idioms and Phrases with combing

comb

see fine-tooth comb.

comb